


Wooing William

by orderlychaos



Category: Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation (2015)
Genre: First Kiss, Fluff, Get Together, M/M, Secret Admirer, Wooing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-16
Updated: 2015-10-16
Packaged: 2018-04-26 15:47:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,778
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5010556
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orderlychaos/pseuds/orderlychaos
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Someone starts leaving Brandt little gifts on his desk at IMF headquarters.  He's pretty sure they're not threats, which means Brandt's got himself a secret admirer.  Only, who could it be?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Wooing William

**Author's Note:**

  * For [infiniteeight](https://archiveofourown.org/users/infiniteeight/gifts).



> Well, this is my first attempt at these characters, so hopefully they're not that out of character. Also, this probably could have been edited a lot better, but I'm tired and I just want to post it. Forgive me.

William Brandt sighed, rubbing a hand over his face.  The gritty feeling in his eyes suggested he should have gone home a long time ago, but Will hadn’t really wanted to face another night alone on his couch.  Normally, after a day of running ops and overseeing his analysts, Will relished the peace and quiet of his apartment.  Lately, though, he’d been feeling a little restless, although the reason why eluded him.  When he’d admitted as much, Benji had jokingly suggested it was because Ethan had disappeared on vacation with Luther in tow.  While things always seemed a little more mundane outside of Ethan’s orbit, that wasn’t the reason.  The truth might have had something to do with the wedding invitation from Will’s old college friend and his encroaching fortieth birthday, but Will hated to think he was that predictable.

Maybe Ethan wasn’t the only one who needed a vacation.

Blinking, Will set down the intelligence report he was reading, and sighed again.  Conceding to his exhaustion, he started packing up.  There wasn’t anything immediately critical to worry about, at least not before the morning.  Will had just finished rolling down his sleeve when he sensed movement at his office door, but when he glanced up, there was no one there.  Will frowned.  The instincts he’d honed during his years as a field agent told him there _had_ been someone standing there.  Not a threat, but someone… watchful.

Whoever it had been, though, was gone now.  Will finished fiddling with his cuffs, too tired to deal with it.  Shrugging into his suit jacket, Will gathered up his things and made a mental note to follow up on the silent visit in the morning.

<*>

After far too few hours sleep, Will let himself back into his office just after eight the next morning.  Blinking, he stopped dead in his tracks a second later, because sitting right in the middle of his desk was a large take away cup of coffee.  Will had been running a little late, so he hadn’t managed to stop for his usual on the way in.  His paranoia was definitely flaring now that someone had apparently noticed.  Or planned for the possibility, maybe?

Setting down his briefcase, Will ran through the various scenarios in his mind.  Coffee seemed a little too vague for a threat, and considering how secure the new IMF headquarters were, there were easier options for assassination.  If it wasn’t for the early hour, Will would have just assumed Benji was bored, but Benji usually hung around to talk.  Frowning, Will touched the side of the cup.  It was still hot.

Maybe one of the analysts wanted something?  Occasionally, one or more of them tried small acts of bribery before submitting a late report or requests for leave.

Pulling off the cup’s lid, Will gave a tentative sniff.  Then he blinked again, because it wasn’t coffee at all.  It was perfectly brewed green tea with a hint of mint and honey.  Just like Will preferred to drink when he was a little stressed or unsettled.  That ruled out one of the analysts, because not even Ethan knew Will’s drink preferences that well.  Giving in, Will took a sip and booted up his computer.  It was doubtful that whoever had left the tea meant Will harm.  If they’d been watching him long enough to gauge his tea preferences, they’d had easier chances to hurt him.

The phone rang just as Will sat down behind his desk.  “Brandt,” he answered.

“Oh, good.  You’re here,” Secretary Hunley greeted.

Mentally, Will raised an eyebrow.  It was a bit early for a direct call from the Secretary of the IMF.  “What can I do for you, Mr Secretary?” Will asked.

“I have reason to believe the situation in Dhaka has destabilized,” Hunley said.  “Or at least, the new Director of the CIA seems to think it deserves the attention of the IMF.  I was hoping you could brief me on everything we know.”

“Yes, sir,” Will said.  “Should I meet you in your office in ten minutes?”

“Thank you,” Hunley said, and hung up.

Smiling slightly to himself, Will started gathering the files he’d need.  Most of the IMF, Ethan included, didn’t really know what to do with Hunley, but Will respected their new Secretary.  Hunley was forthright, efficient and very intelligent, which Will could appreciate.  He also didn’t back away from making hard decisions.  Or the need to reassess his choices when given new information.  London had proven that.  And now that he wasn’t the target of it all, Will had a new appreciation for Hunley’s inherent relentlessness.  Will hoped Hunley felt the same about him, now that they were working towards the same goals.

Smoothing down his suit, Will picked up the electronic files he’d loaded up onto his tablet and prepared to head to his meeting with Hunley.  At the last minute, he grabbed his cup of tea.  After the effort of his mysterious gift-giver, he wouldn’t want to waste it, after all.

<*>

Secretary Hunley looked up and waved Will into his office when Will knocked.  Hunley’s eyes flicked briefly to the cup in Will’s hand, and Will would almost have sworn the edge of Hunley’s mouth curved up into a smile.  The expression was gone a second later.  Will settled down into the chair opposite Hunley and forced his mind back to business.  Now was definitely not the time to notice how much his boss’ grey suit brought out his eyes.

Unsurprisingly, the impromptu briefing, which started out more calming than the tea, degenerated into a crisis.  Somewhere around mid-afternoon, Will grabbed a sandwich as he coordinated with Agent Carter’s team.  But by the time the crisis was mostly dealt with and Will was back in his office, he was more than a little hungry.

Blinking, Will frowned at the new gift sitting on his desk, exactly where that morning’s tea had been.  He was beginning to think he needed to be concerned about who had access to his office.  The box was small and innocuous, and against his better judgement, Will walked closer for a better look.  He still didn’t think he had to worry about the gifts being a threat, but Will was growing curious about who was leaving them.  Will recognised the logo on the side of the box coming from his favourite local bakery, and he couldn’t resist lifting the lid.  Inside were two small vanilla and blueberry cupcakes, which were Will’s secret indulgence.  His stomach fluttered even as paranoia made the point between his shoulder blades itch.  Agent Brandt didn’t like the idea of an unidentified person knowing that much about him, but Will was flattered.  It had been a long time since he’d been on anything but a failed first date.

Will glanced at his watch, but it was about time for an early dinner.  Maybe he could try a pizza.  One of the technicians had brought pizza into the ops centre and the mouth-watering smell had driven Will crazy.  Turning around to do just that, Will blinked when he saw Hunley standing in his doorway.  “Sir,” Will greeted, a second before his stomach rumbled audibly.

Hunley smiled.  “I was going to enquire about the progress of Agent Carter’s mission,” he said, “but perhaps I should come back after you’ve eaten.”

Will had lost his jacket and rolled up his sleeves hours ago, but he suddenly felt incredibly rumpled.  Hunley’s suit was perfectly pressed, and not even his hair was mussed by the long day.  “Actually,” Will said.  “I was just about to go for dinner.”

Hunley raised his eyebrows.  “Not in the mood for cupcakes?” he asked mildly.

When Will blinked, Hunley gestured towards the box on his desk.  “I recognise the packaging,” he said.  His smile deepened.  “It also has your name on it.”

“What?”  Will blinked, stepping closer.  Sure enough, ‘Will’ was scrawled across the tag on the box in black letters.  Will frowned.  The tea that morning was one thing, but who would leave him cupcakes using his first name?

“Is everything all right?” Hunley asked, clearly sensing the change in Will’s mood.

“It’s probably nothing,” Will said.  “Someone left a cup of tea on my desk this morning, too.”  He shot Hunley a dry look.  “And not just from the break room.  From the cafe down the street I like.”

“Perhaps you have a secret admirer,” Hunley suggested.

Will frowned.  A secret admirer?  That was ridiculous.  He raised his eyebrows.  “Two gifts don’t make it a secret admirer,” he replied.

Hunley returned his gaze evenly.  “Then what do you think the gifts mean?” he asked.

Will sighed.  “I don’t know,” he admitted, “but I haven’t entirely ruled out bribery for a late report.”  Except, he had.  Whoever was doing this had put in far more effort than a simple late report would warrant.  The person behind the gifts had taken the time to find out what Will really liked.

Hunley arched an eyebrow.  “Your analysts bribe you with expensive cupcakes?” he said mildly, a trace of amusement curling his lips.  “Should I be jealous?”

Smiling wryly, Will shrugged.  “No,” he said.  “I doubt the gifts mean that much.”

“Are you sure?” Hunley replied.

Will grimaced.  “I’m old enough to know I’m not unappealing, but I’m also old enough to realize secret admirers tend to happen to other people, not me.”

Hunley nodded.  “I can understand that reasoning,” he said dryly.  “Yet it appears you are wrong.  At least one person thinks you are worth small gifts to make your life easier.”

Will swallowed down the fluttering feeling in his chest.  Before he could reply, his stomach reminded him how long since he’d last eaten by gurgling loudly.  Will felt his cheeks heat as Hunley’s eyes lit up with silent laughter.  It was an unfairly good look on him.  “Perhaps I should suggest something a little more substantial before the cupcakes?” Hunley said.

“Right.  Dinner would be good,” Will agreed.  Except, when Hunley turned to leave, Will found himself reluctant to see the other man go.  “Want to join me?” he offered impulsively.  “It might be nice to take a break.”

For a second, surprise flashed across Hunley’s face.  “As long as it’s not an imposition,” he said.  “I wouldn’t want to intrude.”

Raising an eyebrow, Will sent Hunley a look.  During the six months Hunley had been hunting Ethan, he and Will had gotten to know each other pretty well.  That had been one of the only reasons Ethan had agreed to bring Hunley into the operation in London.  By now, Hunley should realize Will wouldn’t offer if he didn’t mean it.

Hunley smiled sheepishly.  “Force of habit,” he said.  “Sometimes, as Secretary of the IMF, I feel as if my manners get more of a work out than anything else.”

Will grinned.  “That’s what happens when you wield them like a weapon.”

Hunley’s smile turned mischievous.  “Perhaps,” he conceded.

<*>

Will didn’t end up getting his pizza, but Hunley did show him a nice Italian restaurant.  It was just a few blocks from the new IMF headquarters, and was decorated in creams and dark wood.  The place was even quiet enough that Will didn’t have to worry awhen the conversation inevitably turned into a casual briefing.  Will wasn’t surprised.  He was enough of a workaholic that this was how half his conversations turned out.  Hunley didn’t appear to mind.  Will suspected Hunley was as much of a workaholic as he was, if not more.

Either way, the meal was nice and calming in a way Will had been craving.  Both he and Hunley lingered a little over coffee before they headed back to their own offices, and Will wasn’t sure what to make of that.  Understandably, he and Hunley hadn’t spent much time together socially before Hunley became Secretary.  Now that they had, Will discovered the dry sense of humour and sometimes biting observations Hunley kept behind his polite smile.  He was also one of the few people who always seemed willing to wait for Will to get to the point he was trying to make.

Will was still pondering how his dinner with Hunley had been better than half his previous dates the next morning when he walked into his office.  Once again, a large take out cup was sitting on his desk.  Curious, Will set down his briefcase and pried off the lid.  This time, instead of green tea, the rich scent of coffee greeted him, mixed with a sweeter smell of vanilla.  Will smiled.  He hadn’t stopped for his usually coffee on the way in again, this time in an attempt to see if his admirer would repeat their gift.  And they had.  Will decided to be flattered.

Gathering up the coffee and a few files, Will headed straight for the ops centre, ready to check in with Agent Carter.  He’d just pressed the button for the elevator, when he saw Hunley walking towards him.  This morning he was dressed in a suit that was almost black and a deep red tie.  Will wondered if that meant he had outside meetings later that afternoon.

“Good morning, Agent Brandt,” Hunley greeted warmly.

“Secretary,” Will replied with his own smile.  “Heading down to Ops?”

“Unfortunately no,” Hunley replied.  “I have a late morning meeting with a few former colleagues at the CIA.  And then a lunch meeting with the National Security Advisor to discuss the new framework regarding threat levels.”  He grimaced slightly.  “If, by any chance, a small crisis should arise around lunchtime, don’t hesitate to call.”

Will grinned.  “I’ll keep that in mind, sir,” he said.

Hunley nodded.  “Thank you.”

The elevator opened up on the corridor leading to the ops centre and Will stepped out with a nod to Hunley.  “Enjoy the coffee, Agent Brandt,” Hunley said as the doors closed.  “Vanilla has always been a favourite of mine.”

Will smiled, before he blinked.  He couldn’t put his finger on it yet, but he was suddenly getting the feeling Hunley knew more about Will’s recent gifts than he was saying.  There was something missing in the scenario, so Will tucked it away in the corner of his mind.  He’d figure out what was going on.

He always did.

<*>

Will’s secret admirer continued to leave small gifts on his desk over the next few days.  Unfortunately, Will had little time to be more than vaguely flattered.  Naturally, Ethan and Luther’s vacation hadn’t been a vacation at all, but rather a trip to try and find Ilsa and bring her back to work for the IMF.  The resulting chaos from that had given Will a headache that not even the regular gifts of green tea could soothe.  He was no closer to figuring out the identity of his secret admirer either.  Not that Will was even sure he wanted to know anymore.  He’d been spending a lot of time with Hunley, and the idea of giving that up to spend time with someone else, even someone kind enough to leave Will gifts, left him strangely cold.

When exactly his feelings for Hunley had grown, Will wasn’t sure.  While Will had always respected him, there had a been a long time where Will hadn’t really liked Hunley very much.  That had slowly changed as they rebuilt the IMF together, the respect deepening and eventually turning to friendship.  At least, Will hoped they were friends.  Now that his own feelings were beginning to grow beyond that, he didn’t really want to contemplate the possibility that Hunley only viewed him as a colleague.  It wouldn’t be the first time Will’s feelings weren’t reciprocated, but it would still suck.

“You know I get that I’m not the most thrilling of conversationalists, but I’m not that boring.  Am I?”

Will blinked, Benji’s question breaking into his thoughts.  He glanced over at his friend, noting the way Benji had wrinkled his nose, clearly biting back his chatter.  Whenever they could manage it, he and Benji met for lunch in a small diner not far from the IMF headquarters.  When Benji had dragged him out of his office just after noon, Will had been grateful.  Except he still couldn’t seem to shake the thoughts that had been plaguing him.  “Sorry,” Will apologised.  “I was just thinking.”

“About what?” Benji asked, his eyes bright with curiosity.

Will took a deep breath, wondering how much he wanted to admit.  It wasn’t that he didn’t trust Benji.  Will was just aware of the way Hunley had put both himself and Benji through the weekly lie detector tests when Ethan had been on the run.  And that Benji might not have forgiven Hunley for that.  Still, Will could use another opinion on this.  “I have a secret admirer,” he admitted.

Benji blinked.  “I’m sorry, what?” he said.

Rolling his eyes at Benji’s barely hidden amusement, Will sighed.  “A secret admirer,” he said.  “Someone’s been leaving me gifts on my desk all week.”

“What kind of gifts?” Benji asked.  He wiggled his eyebrows in a somewhat deranged manner.  “The sexy kind?”

Will huffed, but a smile was tugging at the corner of his mouth anyway.  “This isn’t funny, you know,” he said.

“That entirely depends on where you’re sitting,” Benji replied, stealing one of Will’s fries and failing to hide his wide grin.

“I’m serious, Benji,” Will insisted.  “I’ve never had a secret admirer before.”

Benji blinked again.  “What, never?” he said waving a hand in Will’s direction.  “Even with the suits and the arms?”

This time it was Will’s turn to blink.  He raised his eyebrows in wordless reply, making Benji scowl.  “What?  I’m not blind.  I noticed,” he muttered.  The smile faded from his face.  “This has gotten to you, hasn’t it?”

Will looked down at his mostly eaten burger, suddenly wishing for a beer.  “More than I thought it could,” he said quietly.  His stomach gave a now familiar lurch.  “Whoever it is, they’ve paid attention.  The gifts have been things I really like.  Tea and my favourite cupcakes, and coffee when I really need one but don’t have time to leave my office… things like that.”

“So whoever it is pays attention to you,” Benji said.  “That’s not so impossible.”

Will shrugged, glancing away.  “I guess not,” he replied.

“You have someone you want this to be, don’t you?” Benji asked quietly.

Looking up, Will found Benji’s eyes filled with concern.  He nodded.  “I do,” he agreed.

Benji studied his mostly empty plate for a moment.  “It’s Hunley, isn’t it?” he said, glancing up with an expression Will couldn’t quite identify.

Will let out a breath.  “Yeah,” he agreed.  “I know that’s probably not something you’d want to listen to, but…”

“Hey, no.”  Benji reached across the table to briefly squeeze Will’s fingers in reassurance.  Then he shrugged awkwardly.  “I’ll admit, the Secretary isn’t exactly my favourite person, but you’re my friend, Will.  I’m not going to condemn you for this, even if I’m going to please ask you to keep any details of your dating life to yourself from now on.”

More relieved than he wanted to admit, Will smiled.  “Thanks, Benji.”

Benji shrugged again, ducking his head.  He stole another fry from Benji’s plate, frowning thoughtfully.  “You know, there’s a way to find out who your secret admirer is,” he said.  “Because if I was leaving someone thoughtful and expensive gifts, I’d want to make sure they got them.  And that they were appreciated, you know.  So whoever it is must be close whenever you find them.”  He raised his eyebrows at Will, grinning a little.  “Want me to hack into the security feed and find out who’s hanging around your office a lot lately?”

Will opened his mouth to tell Benji that probably wasn’t necessary when several things finally slotted into place in his mind.  “Son of a bitch,” he hissed.

“What is it?” Benji asked, immediately looked around the diner for threats.

“I know who it is,” Will told him.  He’d suspected Hunley knew more than he was saying about Will’s gifts, and he’d been right.  Just not quite in the way he’d been thinking.  There was only one common factor associated with every gift Will had gotten so far -- Hunley himself.  Somehow, Hunley always called or wandered passed Will’s office just after he’d found something sitting on his desk.  Will didn’t believe in coincidences that neat.

“Who is it?” Benji demanded.

Will grinned.  “I thought you didn’t want to know the details of my dating life?” he said.

Grimacing at the implication, Benji rolled his eyes.  Then he brightened.  “Can I be there when Ethan finds out?” he said.

Will just rolled his eyes, his stomach giving a familiar, shivering lurch.  Now that his secret admirer’s identity wasn’t so secret anymore, Will was content to wait until Hunley wanted to make his move.  Dealing with the ifs and whens of Ethan finding out didn’t seem all that important, but he smiled and shrugged at Benji anyway.  “Sure,” he said.

<*>

Will knocked on the doorframe to Hunleys office, but didn’t walk in.  Instead, he crossed his arms over his chest and leaned against it, waiting for Hunley to look up.  He’d left his jacket back in his office, and his sleeves were rolled up to his elbows, but he didn’t think Hunley would mind the more casual look.

Glancing up from his files, Hunley slipped off his reading glasses and blinked at Will.  For his part, Will kept silent, but he couldn’t stop the smirk curving the corner of his mouth.  It had been three weeks since the gifts had started appearing on his desk, and two weeks since he’d worked out who was leaving them.  Will had given Hunley every chance to confess, but enough was enough.

“Is there something I can help you with, Agent Brandt?” Hunley said finally.

“I don’t know,” Will replied, not moving.  He had to stop his smirk from growing when Hunley’s gaze dropped to his bare forearms.  “I’m hoping you can, but so far you haven’t been the most cooperative.”

Hunley frowned, his expression darkening for a second before smoothing out again.  “I’m afraid you’ll have to be a little more specific,” he said.

“The cups of tea,” Will said, not pulling any of his verbal punches.  Not anymore.  “The coffee.  And the cupcakes.”

“Ah,” Hunley said, leaning back in his chair and his carefully hidden anger dissipating.  “I was aware you’d figure it out eventually.”

Will snorted.  “Eventually?” he echoed.  “I’ve known for two weeks.”

He watched Hunley blink.  “Then why…?” Hunley began.

“Why didn’t I say anything?” Will broke in.  Pushing off the doorframe, he walked over to Hunley’s desk and sat down.  “Well, I was hoping you would.  It strikes me that wooing your colleagues with tea and cupcakes isn’t usually just about fostering professional respect.”

Glancing away, Hunley cleared his throat.  “I must apologise, Agent Brandt, if any of my actions were unwelcome…”

“I never said I didn’t like it,” Will interrupted before Hunley could finish his stilted apology.  “But I might have to start calling you Alan when it’s just the two of us.”

That caught Hunley’s -- _Alan’s_ \-- attention.  He glanced back at Will, something close to hope growing behind his eyes.  “I would like that,” Alan said.  “Will.”

Will smiled.  He didn’t break the silence when Alan continued to study him, because Will didn’t want to rush him.  Alan was man who liked to take his time with the important things.  Will carefully didn’t follow that thought to its very not safe for work conclusions.  He’d said his piece and planned for the various outcomes -- he didn’t mind waiting for Alan to take the next step.

“You know,” Alan said finally, the corner of his mouth curving upwards and his amusement reflected in his eyes.  “Most men would have a few more questions for me at this point.”

Will shrugged.  “I already know why you didn’t tell me you left the gifts,” he said.  And he did -- Alan cared, but he was also no stranger to rejection.  He’d left the gifts to make Will’s day a little better when Will had needed it, with no expectation of Will reciprocating.  Alan hadn’t even needed Will’s acknowledgement, even if he’d planned for it as a likely outcome.  It was nice.  To be thought of so highly, but not be pressured into what Will didn’t want.

Alan cleared his throat.  “Would you like to get dinner with me tomorrow night, Will?” he asked.

Butterflies fluttered in Will’s stomach, but he swallowed them down.  “As a date?” he replied, just so they were clear.

“As a date,” Alan said firmly.

Relaxing, Will smiled.  “I’d love to,” he said.

<*>

_Epilogue_

Will smiled as Alan reached out a hand to help him out of the cab.  It was possible he’d had one too many glasses of wine with dinner, but it had been a long day.  And, as long as Ethan didn’t embroil himself in another crisis, he had the whole weekend free.  Will had wanted to unwind.  Over the last three weeks, Alan had taken out to dinner three times and they’d snuck away from headquarters for coffee twice.  Will considered that to be an achievement for two senior IMF agents.  He’d consider it more of an achievement if Alan had actually given him more than a chaste kiss after their second dinner, but Will was working on that.  Alan was a proper gentleman, but Will was devious.

Alan lightly gripped Will’s elbow, ready to guide Will to the front door of Will’s apartment building.  Grinning, Will twisted away for a second to pay the cab fare and a healthy tip, just in case Alan had any plans to run away.  Turning back, Will pressed a finger to Alan’s lips to stop his protest as the cab drove away.  “Come upstairs with me, Alan,” Will said.

The aftershave Alan was wearing was something crisp and elusive, and almost as teasing as Alan's chaste kisses.  Hopefully Will could change that.  Not that things had to go any further than Alan was comfortable with.  It was just that listening to Alan talk over dinner and then watching him leave was driving Will crazy.  He wanted to keep Alan close for a while longer.  “Nothing has to happen,” he said when Alan looked like he was going to protest again.  “Just come upstairs.  I can make you a cup of tea and we can talk some more.  I don’t want you to leave yet.”

Alan considered this for a second, the corner of his mouth turning up.  “I can do that,” he agreed.

He leaned in to press a kiss to Will’s cheek, but Will wasn’t having this anymore.  When Alan moved to step back again, Will grabbed him by the lapels of his jacket to keep him where he was, and leaned in to press his lips firmly to Alan’s.  Will felt Alan smile, and then he was falling.  Or maybe it was the ground spiralling up to meet him.  Unlike the chaste kiss after their last dinner, this one was hot enough to make Will’s heart pound.  Sparks of want flickered underneath his skin as Alan deepened the kiss.  Will forced himself to relinquish his grip on Alan’s jacket to rest his hand over Alan’s heart.  Part of Will was happy to note Alan’s heart was beating almost as fast as his, but the rest of his mind was finding it hard to keep coherent thought.

Finally, Alan pulled back, and it took Will a moment to open his eyes again.  Alan’s dark gaze was watching him, dancing with amusement as a slightly smug smile curved his mouth.  Will found he didn’t mind very much.  “I thought you were supposed to be taking me upstairs for tea?” Alan said mildly.

Will huffed out a breath, torn between amusement and irritation at Alan’s almost unruffled calm.  He narrowed his eyes as Alan’s smirk grew.  Arching an eyebrow, because two could play at that game, Will fished his keys out of his pocket.  “Come on, then,” he said.

“After you,” Alan said, stepping back.

Nodding, Will headed for the door to the apartment building, purposefully putting a swing to his hips.  Glancing over his shoulder, he grinned when he saw where Alan’s eyes had gone.  Happiness was bubbling up in his chest, warm and bright.  Alan wasn’t a man to act rashly, and he’d chosen Will.  No matter what happened next, no matter what trouble Ethan caused, Alan would be waiting for Will at the end of the day.

That was something Will could really get used to.

 

End.


End file.
